Bedtime Without Arthur

DR A

GO

Bella has a bear named Arthur. Like other bears, he’s soft and cuddly. Unlike other bears, Arthur knows karate and works tirelessly all night to protect Bella from monsters, dragons, slugs, and other things that lurk in the shadows. One night, Arthur goes missing. Her mother, her father, and her little brother search high and low, but he is nowhere to be found. l Bella ev e n? i r f in a d him ag n she fin d a w O r ca a y to be brave all on her own?

Wi l

Ages 4–9

To Bella – Sweet dreams.

Also by Jessica Meserve: SMALL SISTER CAN ANYBODY HEAR ME? American edition published in 2010 by Andersen Press USA, an imprint of Andersen Press Ltd. www.andersenpressusa.com First published in Great Britain in 2009 by Andersen Press Ltd., 20 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London SW1V 2SA. Published in Australia by Random House Australia Pty., Level 3, 100 Pacific Highway, North Sydney, NSW 2060. Copyright © Jessica Meserve, 2009. The author and the artist assert the moral right to be identified as author and artist of this work. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of Andersen Press Ltd., except for the inclusion of brief quotations in an acknowledged review. Distributed in the United States and Canada by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. 241 First Avenue North Minneapolis, MN 55401 U.S.A. www.lernerbooks.com Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Available. ISBN: 978-0-7613-5497-0 Manufactured in Singapore. 1 – TWP – 9/10/09 This book has been printed on acid-free paper

eISBN: 978-0-7613-5998-2

Jessica Meserve ANDERSEN PRESS USA

Bella has a bear. A very special bear called Arthur. He is as brave as a knight. He is as strong as ten elephants. And he does karate.

When Bella sleeps,

r u h Art is

BUSY. He guards the bed and keeps away monsters that come king fro snea o

s . w he shad

mt

in her bed, e f a S Bella dreams of her fav orite things, rainbows e k li . s t s and rainfore

One morning, Arthur was worn out from so much karate.

Bella made him his favorite breakfast of toast and honey, and then tucked him up snug in bed.

That evening, when the moon had risen full and white, Bella went to her room to give Arthur a slice of pizza for supper.

BEAR

S

O N TA

Y

DR A G

ZL GRIZ

LES

Bella pulled back the quilt and...

...yowled,

r u ! ” h t r A “ He

was gone.

Bella

and searched.

searched

Bella’s mom looked upstairs. Bella’s dad looked downstairs. Bella’s brother, Finley, looked worried. None of them could find Arthur

ANYWHERE .

Mom said, “We’ll find him tomorrow.” Dad said, “He’ll turn up.” Finley said, “Sorry.”

But Bella didn’t believe them. Her lip trembled as she climbed into bed.

ouldn’t sleep. c a l Bel ure there wer s s e wa e Sh

MONSTERS watch

aiting. w nd a ing

Bella squeezed her eyes shut tight. She fell asleep dreaming of

FIRE - BREATHING DRAGONS ,

SLUG S

and grizzly bears.

In the morning, Bella was exhausted.

She couldn’t juggle.

Even the ice cream didn’t cheer her up.

And at bedtime there was still no sign of Arthur.

B

Owl

s

ir

ds

The wind began to

. l w o h d n a b lo w

Bella woke with a start.

She saw things looming and scratching at the window.

That night the wind began to blow and howl

Bella leapt out of bed and ran as fast as she could across the hallway into her brother’s room.

Finley was sound asleep. Bella began climbing into his crib. Peeking from under the blanket, she saw the tip of a soft, furry nose.

It was Arthur! Bella was so happy to see him . . .

. . . but she was very angry with her brother for taking him. She grabbed Arthur and started back to her room.

Left all alone, Finley was afraid. “Monsters!” he cried. Bella pretended not to listen. “Serves him right,” she thought as she reached the door.

Bella looked back at her brother. She saw Finley’s eyes, wide and full of tears, and her anger melted away.

Bella realized that Finley needed Arthur more than she did. Finley wasn’t nearly as strong and brave as she was.

Bella took Arthur back to Finley and tucked them both up in bed. “Don’t be scared, Finley. Arthur will look after you.”

Bella felt braver and braver with each step she took back to her room.

When at last she climbed into bed, Bella felt as brave as a knight. All the monsters shook with fear and fizzled into nothing.

That night Bella slept long and deep and dreamed of all her favorite things.

And so did Finley.

THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK

Jessica Meserve was born in Maine and grew up in New Hampshire. She studied illustration at the Edinburgh College of Art in Scotland. Before pursuing a career as an illustrator, she worked in children’s publishing. She now lives with her partner and daughter. Jessica is the author and illustrator of Small Sister and Can Anybody Hear Me?, and she illustrates the Daisy Dawson books by Steve Voake.

Jacket illustrations © 2009 by Jessica Meserve

Andersen Press USA www.andersenpressusa.com Distributed in the United States and Canada by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. 241 First Avenue North Minneapolis, MN 55401 U.S.A. www.lernerbooks.com

www.andersenpressusa.com